Is Kendo good for older slower people?

by Matthew L Reed
(Pheonix, AZ, USA)

I hope you don't get asked this question a lot. I was born in Japan, and moved to the USA when young. I have an interest in Kendo, but I am now 55 years old, overweight, my eyesight is not good and I am not very fast.

How would I do with Kendo? I am afraid I would not do well because I am not very fast and don't see as well as my younger faster opponents would.

Do you have any advice for older slower people that want to learn Kendo?

Thank you for all you do!

Matthew L Reed

Answer: Thank you for your question. Actually it is one of the most common questions :) Here are the Qs&As about the age. So please read them.

· Overweight -> A lot of people who seem overweight do kendō. But you should train gradually.

· my eyesight is not good -> I have glaucoma in my left eye. Bifocal. Wearing contact lens though.

· I am not very fast -> people in their 60s, 70s and 80s are not faster than any of teenagers but they still kick their butts. Speed is only one of the elements.

Now if you want to compete in tournament among teenagers and win, then you need speed. You need to train harder than anyone at your dōjō.

But if you are starting now, you should not worry about it now. What you should do is to start.

While learning kendō, you will learn how slow the process is. It is not your fault. Kendō takes a long time to learn. People quit because they cannot improve as they think they should but the truth is it takes a loooong time.

While learning, you will find out a lot about you. That is the most important process you have to go through.